Parks and green areas

In Atsaleapuisto park, which is located along the Riihimäki Vahteristo outdoor trail, there is an accessible longwood path, where you can rest on the benches of the viewing terrace. The park is also surrounded by traditional long trees. The area can be seen from above from the Helge Hirvinen landscape tower, which was made by the artist Juha Pykäläinen.

Check out the information sign in the area.

Atsaleapuisto park is a park established in 2011 by the University of Helsinki and the city of Riihimäki. About 200 azaleas have been planted in the area and the goal has been to find successful varieties in Finland.

The bushes in the park come from crossings started in the early 1990s. The best of the offspring of the crossings were planted in the swampy forest of Vahteristo. Other exam locations are Salo, Jyväskylä, Helsinki Viikki and Kuopio.

Blooming time of azalea

The flowering time of park azalea is about three weeks. In Vahteristo, the azaleas bloom in early June, usually until midsummer. You can get there from the parking lot of the Uhkola outdoor recreation area, from where it is about 300 meters to the park along the outdoor trail. In the area, you must walk along built routes to protect surface-rooted azaleas.

See the location of Atsaleapuisto on the map.

Photos by Jenniina Nummela

Bad Segeberg park is located in the northeast corner of Peltosaari. In the middle of the park area there is a pond and a wooden bridge and benches. In June 1926, a swimming pool was opened on the site. The Peltosaari swimming facility stopped working after the completion of Urheilupuisto's new land swimming pool in 1955. Construction of the current park began in the 1970s. The park is named after the town of Bad Segeberg in Germany, which has been one of Riihimäki's twin towns since 1954.

See the location of Bad Segeberg park on the map.

Photos Riihimäki city

The municipality of Riihimäki started renovating a small forest into Opistopuisto in the 1930s. The northern end of the area was set aside as an educational park for public school students, and twenty different tree species were planted there, including all of Finland's precious trees: oak, elm, ash, linden and maple.

During the Winter War, they wanted to place the hero's cemetery in a more central location in the town than the actual Riihimäki cemetery. Kauppala donated the southern end of Opistopuisto for this purpose in January 1940. The hero's cemetery was designed by architect Viljo Rewell. In 1948, the granite hero statue carved by the sculptor Kalervo Kallio was unveiled. The hero's cemetery was completely taken over by the parish in 1954.

When Finland turned 50, the park was named Itsenäisyydenpuisto park. In 1986, the Itsenäisyydenkuusi was planted in the park, which is a clone of the original spruce in Helsinki.

Tree species in the Itsenäisyydenpuisto park

1.  Douglas fir is the most common conifer in the mountains of western North America. It may live for more than 1000 years and in this time it can grow to more than 100 meters high. The longest Douglas fir is 115 meters long and, along with the giant redwood, it is the longest tree species in the world. Douglas firs are usually 50-70 meters tall, and although the tree thrives well in southern Finland, it only grows to 25-30 meters here.
2. Growing in the mountain areas of the Balkans at an altitude of 1600-2000 meters with Macedonian pine The 7-10 cm long needles are attached to the dwarf branches in bunches of five needles, on a regular pine they are in pairs. Macedonian pine is narrowly conical at the top. In its original growth area, the Macedonian pine grows to a height of 27-34 meters, but it is considerably shorter here. Macedonian pine is rarely found as tall as the three specimens in this park in Finland.
3. Forest maple does not form forests in Finland, but it is found in rich-nutrient, grove-like places throughout southern Finland. When cultivated, it thrives in Central Ostrobothnia and as far as North Karelia. When the tree is young, it grows very fast, but as it gets older, the growth slows down. Maple usually lives up to 150 years old. Finland's largest maple tree growing in Turku is 32 meters tall.
4. October is from the southwestern part of the USA. In nature, it grows up to 50 meters, but as a park tree it usually remains 15 meters long. The horizontal branches grow in regular layers, usually down to the ground. The tree is slow-growing, but can live up to 400 years. Okakuusi is very resistant to pollution and thrives in sweaty sandy soils. The tree does not tolerate shading and has become popular as a single tree in parks and home gardens.
5. Hawthorn; Turku Academy professor Pietari Kalm made a plant-collecting trip to North America in 1748-51 and brought from there to Finland e.g. hedgerow hawthorn. From the Academy's garden, this southeastern Canadian species has spread throughout Finland and is our most popular hedge plant species. Hawthorn is modest in terms of where it grows, but thrives best in sunny places.
6. Park lehmus is a cross between forest larch and large leaf larch. It is the most commonly cultivated linden species in parks and roadsides. Puistolehmus has a regular conical, wide branching. The bark of young linden trees is grey-brown, but in older ones it is almost black and has longitudinal ridges. The linden can live up to 800 years in Finland. An old tree is usually hollow, but can last for centuries as it stands. The longest linden tree in Finland grows in Savitaipale and is 30 meters tall.
7. Ash is, along with elm and linden, the largest deciduous tree in Finland. The individual growing in the bottom holder is 33,5 meters tall. Finnish summer is too short for ash and oak, the area of ​​occurrence of both trees is limited to the south coast south of the Pori-Hämeenlinna-Lahti line. The crown of the saar is round and rather sparse. The branches are upright, the branches stiff and thick. Ash is a nuisance not only in terms of the climate but also the soil, it thrives best in limestone areas.
8. From the Serbian spruce grows wild only in a narrow area in the Dinaric Alps at an altitude of about 1000-1500 meters. Before the Ice Age, the species was found all over Europe, and most of the amber has been formed from the fossil resin of the Serbian alder tree. In the wild, the tree grows up to 40 meters tall, but when planted it usually stays at 15 meters. Serbian spruce is very resistant to pollution and dust, so it has become popular in urban plantings. The Serbian spruce is very narrow-growing.
9. Independence tree has been grown from the seeds of Helsinki's independence tree.
10. Siberian pine grows wild in northern Russia and Siberia. In Finland, it became popular already in the 1800th century in manor parks and in the courtyards of large country houses. You can tell by the bushy and often bifurcated top. Siberian spruce does not live more than 150 years. Young trees require the protection of shade trees, so the pitch is not suitable for planting on open lawns. In nature, the tree grows to 40 meters, but the trees planted in Finland remain 20-25 meters long.
11. Tammi is the most common tree species in central European deciduous forests, but in Finland there are oak forests only in the southwestern archipelago. When planted, the oak is also successful in central Finland. The oldest oaks in Central Europe are around 2000 years old, but Finnish oaks are only 600-700 years old. Old oaks are very thick-bodied. Finland's record oak in Piikkiö has a circumference of no less than 766 cm at breast height. The broad, round canopy does not rise higher than 30 meters here. The branches are thick and lumpy. Oak requires a lot of light and grows best in nutrient-rich, clay-based groves.
12. Mountain elm grows in southern Finland as a very rare grove tree. Wild tree individuals are protected. A related species, the pencil elm, is even rarer than the mountain elm. Both species are found in Etelä-Häämee. Finland's largest elm is a 39-meter tree growing in Tammisaari. The branches of the elm are obliquely upwards. Mountain elm is a fast-growing tree when young, which may live up to 300 years.
13. In the wild yew tree grows only in Åland, where it usually remains bushy. The wild yew tree has been tamed. Yew thrives best in moist, calcareous soil. It tolerates shading very well but is sensitive to frost. Yew is a dark green, densely growing coniferous tree. The largest yew trees in Europe have a height of 15 meters and may live up to 1500 years.
14. Mountain rowan is the most common pendulous variant created through a backyard mutation. Specimens growing in parks are grafted onto the parimetric stem of an ordinary rowan. The wild shoots of the base must be removed. The tree can be shaped by trimming the branches. Mountain rowan tolerates drought, wind and shading well. It is rather short-lived, usually less than a hundred years old. The autumn color of the tree is a beautiful red.
15. Mountain pine is native to the mountain regions of Central and Southern Europe. It is usually low and bushy growing, rarely growing a trunk. The species is used a lot to cover rocks and slopes, because it thrives best in sunny places. Due to its mountain home, mountain pine thrives in Southern Lapland in Finland as well.

Photos by Teemu Virtanen

Jukka Jalonen park was previously known as Keskuspuisto. It is located in the area between Valtakatu, Pohjoinen Rautatienkatu and Kauppakatu. The park was named the Jukka Jalonen park in the fall of 2019. The Finnish men's national ice hockey team won the world championship under the leadership of Jalonen in the spring of 2019, and the city wanted to honor Jalonen's achievements in the ice hockey world by naming the park. Jukka Jalonen is originally from Riihimäki.

The park was renovated in the fall of 2018, when the fences surrounding the pond were removed and it became possible to be by the water. The park has a very popular children's playground, a picnic table and an open grassy area. Stepping stones lead to the island of the pond and in the summer season there is a fountain in the pond. The pond also has the Riihimäki city's R logo element.

Soundscape work

At the park's official naming ceremony in February 2020, the soundscape work was unveiled. The piece consists of a speaker that emits the condensing soundscape of a hockey match, and a gold-engraved puck that reminds of the achievements of a top coach. The soundscape was designed by designer Paula Susitaival and sound designer Teemu Korpipää.

See the location of Jukka Jalonen park on the map.

  
Photos by Jenniina Nummela and Niina Rimpiläinen

Kastanjapuisto park is a popular picnic park right next to the Atomi and Neutroni shopping centers at the corner of Eteläinen Asemakatu and Kulmala puistokatu. The park has a pond and benches in the grassy area.

See the location of Kastanjapuisto on the map.

Photos by Niina Rimpiläinen

Kirjastonpuisto park is located in front of Riihimäki library between Kauppakatu and Kauppakuja. In the renovation of the park in 2020, the front of the library was opened as a square to the park. The square has plenty of places to sit and the perennial plantings delight passers-by throughout the year. The lighting in the park is experiential. The reduced fracture font letter K, which symbolizes the library, culture, language and nation, is projected onto the library's clock wall. At nightfall, the park "comes alive".

A work of experience

You can experience Kirjastonpuisto park's work of experience every day after sunset, on even hours until the end of February. The last show in the evenings is at 21.00:XNUMX. The work consists of light and sound and tells the history of communication, from caveman speech to wireless digital communication. The designer of the experience piece, Esa Horttanainen, has brought the most significant human ways of communication to the park.

See the location of Kirjastonpuisto park on the map.

   
Photos Riihimäki city, summer photos by Niina Rimpiläinen

Lasinpuhaltaja park is located in the center of Riihimäki, at the end of Keskuskatu. In 1960, the Glass Blower statue was placed on the slope of the park. Riihimäki Lasi and its employees donated the statue to the city in honor of becoming a city. The Glass Blower carved by sculptor Kalervo Kallio has become Riihimäki's symbol and a place of celebration.

In 2023, the park was renovated and now its wide lawn offers a great view over the Glass Blower statue to the city center. There are benches for sitting in the park, and the park is lined with abundant plantings.

See the location of Lasinpuhaltaja park on the map.

Lounaspuisto, on the northeast side of the library, is a versatile central park, which, as its name suggests, is a good picnic spot. In the 2020 renovation, an activity square was built in Lounaspuisto, with a ping-pong table and room to play petanque, for example. In addition, some of the tables in the paved lounge have a game board. As a novelty in the summer of 2024, an outdoor chess playing field was built in the park following the participatory budgeting vote. The chess pieces can be used by borrowing the key to their storage box from the library. You can also borrow ping pong rackets and balls, chess or checker pieces, mölky or pétanque for playing from the library's sports lending office.

See the location of Lounaspuisto park on the map.

Photos by Niina Rimpiläinen, Päivi Sundman

Kolmiopuisto park is located at the intersection of Hämeenkatu and Valtakatu. There is a fountain in the park during the summer season. In the winter season, the park is decorated with tree lights.

See the location of Kolmiopuisto park on the map.

Photo by Jenniina Nummela and Niina Rimpiläinen

The Messupuisto park is located next to the Finnish Glass Museum and the Finnish Hunting Museum at the northern end of Tehtaankatu. In the 90s, yard fairs started to be organized in the area, and from that time the exhibition park has two ponds, plantings and various coating solutions. In the 2000s, the area served as the stage for the Riihimäki Rock event, and later the Rauta ja Petroli event has been organized in the park, among other things. There is a playground in the northern part of the park.

See the location of the Messupuisto park on the map.

 
Photos by Niina Rimpiläinen, aerial photo by Kimmo Haapanen

Riihimäki Butterfly Park is located in the Juppala district in the park area bordering Untolantieh, Paavolantieh and Petsamonkatu (Linjapuisto) near the Riihimäki race track. The parking lot is located at the end of Untolankatu. The purpose of the park is to make it possible to view Finnish butterflies freely in a meadow-like landscape, which essentially includes a playground.

The Perhospuisto park was renovated in 2020–21. In addition to the butterfly-themed playground, the theme park now has fitness equipment, a balance track, a hanging swing and a picnic table. The renovation also improved the living conditions of the butterflies by diversifying the plant species. Plantings in the park focus on food plants for butterflies. These include the nettle growth maintained in the meadow area, which is a vital food source for the larvae of several different butterfly species.

The area of ​​the park is about 2,5 ha and it is closely related to the park and private home area of ​​about 20 hectares. About 20 different species of the most common butterfly species have been found. The most spectacular butterflies, such as the damselfly, thistle and admiral butterfly, can be found in the park in late summer, but already in early summer there is plenty to see in the park. In addition, you can listen to the concert of grasshoppers.

There are guide boards in the area that tell about the life of butterflies. The butterfly species that occur at different times of the summer are shown on the table with color pictures.

In August 2024, the park received the Green Flag Award for the second time, which is awarded to well-maintained and managed green areas.

Butterfly poem trail

In the spring of 2022, a butterfly poetry trail was opened in the natural area of ​​the park. Butterfly poems by local poets can be found along the path. Now an online version of the poem trail has also been published. Dive into the world of flowers and butterfly poems: Poetry trip to Perhospuisto park – Perhospuisto park's online poetry trail.

See the location of Perhospuisto park on the map.

  
Photos by Niina Rimpiläinen

Piikinmäenpuisto park area is located in Piikinmäki, in the area between Etelän Viertotie and Kulmalan puistokatu. The park has Gritbird fitness equipment and fitness stairs, as well as a playground with a fast-paced carousel. Piikinmäenpuisto park was built in autumn 2022.

See the location of Piikinmäenpuisto park on the map.

Photos by Niina Rimpiläinen

Rautatienpuisto park is the oldest park in Riihimäki. Its construction began in the 1850s. The park is located between the train station and the central city. The park is a pleasant and peaceful oasis with old tree plantations and residential buildings. The Riihimäki city museum is located in the park. The western edge of the area is dominated by the central church of Riihimäki.

See the location of the Rautatienpuisto park on the map.

Photos by Jenniina Nummela, except for the city museum's photo by Teemu Virtanen.

The Urheilupuisto park's morning glory is famous for its beauty. There is a handsome water tower in the area, which is called Vesilinna water tower, and on the upper platform there is a restaurant with a view during the summer. A swimming pool, indoor swimming pool, sports hall, and athletics and soccer fields can be found in the park area. The Urheilupuisto park is also the venue for the International Wilderness Fair.

See the location of the Urheilupuisto park on the map.

Photo by Niina Rimpiläinen

Kokonkatu dog park is located next to Istuinkivi bridge in Kokonkatu in a beautiful woods. The park has separate enclosures for small and large dogs. There is also a parking lot next door (1 hour with a parking ticket).

See the location on the map.

Photo Riihimäki city

The dog park in Peltosaari is located at the corner of Hj. Elomaa and VI Oksanen streets. The park has separate enclosures for small and large dogs. There are wind lockers at the entrances to the enclosures, so you can safely release your pet and enter the park in peace from other dogs.

See the location on the map.

Photo Riihimäki city

Companies from Riihimäki sponsor a dog-friendly, cleaner and more comfortable Riihimäki. TiksPac's 15 dog poop bag stands are placed in different parts of Riihimäki's parks and along the trails. You can take company-sponsored dog poo bags with you from the stand, and the park workers replenish the bags on the stands during the garbage rounds.

See the rack locations on the map.

The dog poop trash is the outdoor trash of a small house, where the owner of the trash has given permission for passing dog walkers to drop the poop picked up in the dog poop bag. The people of Riihimäk have the opportunity to apply for free dog poop waste stickers from the Information Center. More information at koirankakkaroskis.fi.